Twist of Fate
by Dragen Eyez
Summary: In the final battle with Aizen, both Rangiku and Gin die, but when they're reborn in the human world, will fate be more kind, or will history repeat itself? RanxGin
1. Prologue

I think my drabbles are already making me want to write more. So, I did, even though I should be in bed, sleeping, since I have to be up in about 4 hours to train for my new job. I just couldn't not start writing this somehow. This is probably the only part of the story that will be in soul society. The rest will be in the human world, and definitely has some semi-AU. Hope you all enjoy this!

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Prologue

It wasn't supposed to be like this.

This wasn't the ending.

Gin's greatest fear had always been death. Now, he looked forward to it. Twenty-nine days had passed by slowly as he counted the minutes that would erase him from existence. He hated that he had been given the customary grace period.

The final battle had begun, and even so, he was still jovial enough to be glad his old lieutenant was doing well. Captains and lieutenants began to fight the espadas as he was enshrined in Ryuujin Jakka along with Tousen and Aizen. They all stood idly, Gin was a little bored, looking forward to the victory he was sure would soon happen.

Then the fire faded, and Gin looked for his lieutenant to see how he fared. A dark, cold ripple ran through him when he saw Izuru bent over Rangiku. Half her side was missing, just below her ribcage. But Izuru was a capable young man when it came down to it; Gin knew his childhood friend would be all right. However, they caught his attention, and he neglected the rest of the battlefield.

As the fight moved towards Aizen, Gin's gaze remained towards his childhood friend, and he did not come to Aizen's aid. Gin saw the scene replay in his head a hundred times. Aizen gave a single, short order to an espada, "Kill them."

The espada's sword went though Izuru's back to pierce Rangiku's heart. Izuru had lived.

Rangiku died.

Gin could feel it the moment she died; her reiatsu blinking out.

He hadn't known he loved her until then. He hadn't known she had his heart.

Shinsou shot out into Aizen, Gin couldn't remember releasing the zanpakutou. Aizen gave him such a look, not believing the betrayal at first. Such a man should have known better, after his betrayal of soul society, of Hinamori. He had made it possible for soul society to win, but none of it mattered to him by then.

The girl he had given a birthday to was no more. If he had never let Aizen convince him, persuade him that Aizen was something akin to god, she might still live. And Gin realized, too, how his betrayal must have hurt Rangiku, and he hated himself for it.

The day Gin finally left the repentance cell and to the Soukyoku hill, he was relieved. The great soukyoku had been destroyed, but there was more than one way to destroy a soul forever. Gin knelt over a stone slab, and the executioner raised a mighty axe.

Gin's smile was gone, and he was glad he wouldn't be able to hurt Rangiku in her next life, or any others.

The axe fell.

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Yeah, it starts off sad, doesn't it? But maybe if I get all the sadness out of the way now, I'll get to write lots of happiness later, I hope.

Also, reviews make my day in amazing ways.


	2. Chapter 01

Ahh, I've written so much late (compared to the past few months, anyway). In a way, I guess this chapter is still something of a prologue; just some things I needed to establish. Sooo sleepy am I, to bed I go after this.

Also, I think I forgot a disclaimer in the last chapter? Anyway, if so, I don't own Bleach, thus this story is on , as I'm a big fan of Kubo Tite, Bleach, and GinxRan. This disclaimer applies to all chapters in this story, so I don't have to repost it. No money in this for me, just enjoyment.

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Chapter 1

She had never wanted to work in a restaurant; she had had all kinds of dreams about fabulous jobs from being the Little Mermaid to FBI agent to owner of a brilliant website like Facebook. Instead, none of those things had happened.

Rangiku was out of options; it just seemed like luck was not on her side. She had applied for job after job, and she had sat through fourteen initial interviews, and every time the position she wanted was filled by the time she got there. She did not know why they still had her sit through the interviews, and she knew she had the looks and the personality to be a great server. Rangiku tried to gloss over her complete lack of experience, but until now, she had just been so busy with everything else. Now, she was closer to twenty than nineteen, and she had never had a job, not even a baby-sitting job when she was younger.

Finally, though, one of Rangiku's friends told her that the restaurant she worked at was in desperate need of pretty, busty women. She glanced down as she walked towards the restaurant. She had boobs in spades, and she was damned proud of them. Rangiku walked inside.

"Rangiku, you came!" Allie said. "I've been telling the manager all about you. I'll go tell him you're here and get an application. Sit down."

"So this is the girl?" A guy from a booth two down from the front door. "You're hot."

A fat man about Rangiku's height hurried up to the front. "Wow, you're hot," he said. He looked at Allie. "She's hot. Smoking."

Rangiku could not help but laugh. "Thanks, I get that a lot."

"I bet, okay, here's an application, fill it out, the head manager will sit down with you then, get you set up for orientation. Need a pen?"

"I'm good, thanks." Rangiku was not sure whether to laugh or cry. She had a job, thanks to nothing but her boobs. Okay, so many all around Rangiku thought she scored an eleven out of ten, but still, a girl could hope she could get by in life without resorting to only her looks.

Half an hour later, Rangiku left to buy shoes; her orientation started in a couple of days.

A few weeks later, Rangiku felt like she'd been waiting tables all her life, and she had so many regulars requesting her that she always made the best tips. After all, she filled out the bright orange shorts perfectly, and when she wore her V-necked crop top, men's eyes bugged out of their heads. And then there was the service; Rangiku got paid to flirt and chat with her customers. She did not have to try at all to master that; it was natural to her, and fun.

It was not her forever, but she thought it would definitely get her by.

Gin Ichimaru was something of a genius, and when he wanted to, he worked extremely hard, so when he graduated college after three years, he had several great jobs lined up. The problem was, none of them were perfect.

One paid too little, two would not let him rise as quickly to the top as he wanted, and the last one was perfect, except that he would have to move across the country, from Connecticut to southern California.

Despite all of the mischief he caused, and all the times he managed to get out of doing schoolwork, paperwork, and all the other tedious chores his life had presented him with, Gin was extremely goal oriented. He wanted to go to Yale, so maintained a 4.3 GPA, became vice-president of the student council, captain of the swim team, and volunteered. He graduated high school when he was seventeen, and went to Yale on enough scholarships he never spent a dime.

Now, he wanted to be president of a large business corporation.

So he was going to move across the country. His friends would be left behind, and Gin really doubted he would ever come back to visit. He did not really have any family to speak of, and he had no girlfriend to break up with.

California was not Gin's favorite place by far, but that is where the job took him, and that was all that mattered to him. He could make new friends, acquaintances. Generally, people seemed to be fairly interchangeable to him. Still, he enjoyed going out once in awhile, and acquaintances always had the best gossip. He liked to know as much about people as possible while letting everyone else know as little about him as possible.

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So what'd you think? Review for lollipops!


	3. Chapter 02

I've been fiddling with this instead of with my novel.... Oh well! Hopefully this won't be something that ends up with an epic length. That would fail, a lot. Anyway, I'm sleepy, so off to sleep I go n' stuff

**Thanks** to: sierraqueen, MissTeak, crazyfreakazoid, Master Solo, cool guy 33, Mihara-chan, Sonozaki-sama, and Solar Kitty. Man, this is surprisingly popular for just something I sort of slapped together one day ^___^ I love you guys!**Chapter 2**

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Gin had to keep reminding himself that forming relationships with others was important to reach his goals. Even if it meant going to Hooters for three things he could care less about: wings, beer, and Hooters girls.

His boss, Steve, however, did. His boss wanted Gin to go with him, along with another co-worker, Frank. Steve told him that the girls would come sit down at the table with them and talk with them. Gin thought that was probably one of the most annoying things a waitress could do. He did not care to get to know a waitress; that would not help him with his goals at all.

Still, he drove with Steve and Frank to the restaurant, his usual smile and teasing manner in place. He looked around the place; nothing special.

A woman walked up to them, "Hi, welcome to Hooters! Can I get you a table or a booth?"

"How about a high top?" Steve said.

"Oh, sure," she said and led them to a high table with bar stools. "Rangiku will be over in just a second to get you started off."

Gin preferred chairs with backs to them, but he was not about to complain out loud. He looked at the menu, "What's good?"

A woman responded, her voice smooth and a little husky, "Everyone loves the wings, but tonight we have a special on snow crab legs. Can I start you boys off with something to drink?"

Steve and Frank both ordered Budweiser. Gin knew he was expected to drink as well. "Sam Adams." It was somewhat better than Budweiser, he thought.

"I'll need to see your ID, please."

Gin slid it out of his wallet and finally looked up at the waitress as he handed it over. His hand froze. "…Do I know you?" The big, ice blue eyes surrounded by waves of strawberry blond, the beauty mark near her mouth, even her figure with breasts threatening to spill out of a tank top stretched to its limits, yet almost loose on her waist, it all seemed all too familiar.

"Aw, most people say I'm pretty unforgettable," she said, looking over the ID. "I'm Rangiku. Now, I know Steve and Frank here, but you're new, mm? Do you work with Steve?"

"Gin Ichimaru, pleased ta meetcha. I work fer Steve" he said, but the words were automatic. His eyes opened a bit more, revealing blue eyes with a hint of green, staring at Rangiku, feeling as if he was seeing someone important after a long time apart. Something about her also made him sad. He felt it so deeply it hurt to look at her, yet he could not tear his eyes away.

Rangiku handed back his ID and looked away from him quickly. "Okay then, I'll get those drinks sent in for you."

"Someone's a boob man," Frank said and laughed.

"Looks like we took him to the right place," Steven said.

"Maybe." But Gin did not think he was much of an anything man. He just had his fun and went on with life. Most people he knew wanted to settle down, tie themselves to others until there were so many strings all around they were bound up like a mummy.

He did not care for being confined. He could hardly stand wearing a tie at work. As soon as he was off the clock, he would remove his tie and unbutton his top button. Gin looked around at the other waitresses, "Hooters Girls" they called themselves. All were fairly attractive women, but it was obvious Rangiku was the favorite from the way her section was filled.

Beer bottles clinked down. Rangiku folded her arms on the high top, leaning towards them. "Well boys, have you had a chance to look over the menu?"

Gin's jaw clenched a bit when both Steve and Frank ordered their crabs legs to her breasts.

He knew his own gaze flicked downwards; it was hard not to notice her chest. Still, he raised his eyes when he ordered, meeting her blue ones briefly. "Guess I'll get the same."

"You know," Rangiku said. "I get the feeling you might like the boneless wings more. The parmesan garlic sauce is great."

"We'll do tha' then," he said. Gin was not sure why he believed her, but he did.

Rangiku walked away; his eyes wanted to follow her, but instead he took a sip of his beer and listened to Steve and Frank talk about office politics. They were thinking of laying off some of the entry-level employees, and possibly letting that rumor slip to see who performed the best with the possibility of losing a job looming over them.

"Ah, I dunno about that," Gin said. "Rather see who works the best normally. 'Sides, lotta drama ya can cut out then."

"The worst is sorting them all out," Steve said. "But you know, Gin, you're on top of you're game. Maybe I should put you in charge of that."

Gin would do it if he had to; he would do a lot o things if he had to. However, he did not care for that at all. Firing people who did not deserve it did not set well with him. "We'll see."

By the time they were part way through their meal, it was much slower in the restaurant. "Anything else I can get for you?"

"I'll take another Budweiser. After that, why don't you sit down with us for a bit, rest your feet?" Steve said.

"Ah, sure, I'll see if I can't manage that," she said, but Gin decided she did not want to.

He was not sure she wanted her to sit down, but when she returned with the beer, Rangiku sat down beside him, the only open seat. "Well, boys, I tell you what, it's been a busy night. It's nice to finally sit down."

"So, Rangiku, how're things? Settled into working here all right?"

"Oh, things here are great. Last time we talked I was pretty nervous; it was my first week," she said. "But I guess I must be a natural, I got used to it all fast. So new boy, how'd you end up working with Steve?"

"Jus' finished up my masters, moved down from Connecticut fer the job."

"Your masters? But you're only twenty-three."

"Gin's a real go-getter," Steve said. "Started college at seventeen, got his BA in three years, his masters in another three."

"Wow, so you're a really smart one, huh?" Rangiku glanced at him. "I did a little college, but sometimes things don't work out the way we want them to, y'know? So, Frank, did you ever manage to ask out that hottie you saw at the gym?"

"Not exactly," Frank said. "There's been a lot of stuff going on at work, plus I've been playing a lot of basketball with the boys."

Gin's customary smile rose slightly. "Ah, c'mon now, that sounds like some mighty big excuses. Might as well compliment her by actually askin' her out."

"See? That's what I said. Unless a guy's just flat out creepy—and Frank, you seem like a sweetie—a girl will be flattered, no matter if she says yes or no. Don't you want to make her day?"

"Looks like you're getting double-teamed," Steve said.

"I know, I know," Frank said.

"'Sides, if you just keep staring too much too long, yer chances might go down. She might think yer a stalker. Wouldn' want that fer my buddy here."

Rangiku smacked Gin's arm. "Be nice. You'll scare him. Frank, don't listen to Gin. He's mean." She emphasized her point by making a face at Gin, laughing to take away any offense.

Each time she left, Gin's eyes trailed after her, loath to let her leave. At the same time, something at the back of his mind nagged him, telling him to let her go. In fact, the feeling told him he should run the opposite way without looking back. To never return.

Then Rangiku would return, and the feeling was swept away with her smile, the sound of her laughter. Once, he thought, he must have met someone like her.

Finally, Rangiku brought their bill, split three ways. Gin glanced down at it. He tossed down a twenty and a five for a fifteen dollar meal and walked out, forcing his eyes away from the busty woman as she called out a good night to him.

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I'm thinking about doing the sort of dual-perspective that chapter 1 has throughout the story, but I don't know if it would just be repetitive. What do you guys think? Do you want to see their meeting through Rangiku's eyes as well, or go straight on with the story through Gin's eyes?

Reviewers get pie. An extra piece and/or whipped cream will be added to that if you answered my questions.


	4. Chapter 03

I got a surprisingly large amount of this written on my plane home from Paris, which was a nice surprise! Very glad to be home again. I'm going to try to do a lot of work on this story to finish it up fairly soon, so we'll see how it goes. I'm aiming for at least a chapter a week, as these chapters take longer to do than my 100 drabble challenge (which is also RanxGin centric if you're curious).

**Thanks** to: MissTeak, Ayamichan34, sierraqueen, NoirCiel, Master Solo, Sonozaki-sama, shelbypf, roystealer, Solar Kitty, juliemoonstar, Mihara-chan, OhayouLovelesskun, moonstruck, cool guy 33, and tyu123suzy. Wow, that's a lot of reviews. I love you guys ^____^

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**Chapter 3**

Rangiku hurried towards her table; it figured someone would request her when her section was nearly full. Still, she was making good money; it was better to be busy and on her feet than sitting and waiting for a customer to walk in.

A mellow, dulcet voiced man asked his companions, "What's good?"

Rangiku loved that voice, she hoped he was half as good-looking as his voice sounded, even if all she got out of it was more genuine flirting. She said, " "Everyone loves the wings, but tonight we have a special on snow crab legs. Can I start you boys off with something to drink?"

While Steve and Frank ordered their usual Budweiser, Rangiku looked at the man accompanying them as he stared at the menu. Silver hair, nearly closed eyes, and a smile that made her wonder if his screws were a little loose. Thin, a little bony, but handsome, very handsome, she decided. However, something about him made her want to run the other way and never look back.

"Sam Adams," he said.

"I'll need to see your ID, please," Rangiku said. Now that she thought about it, he sounded like a good liar.

He slid his ID out of his wallet and handed it to her. His hand hovered in the air, stopped halfway between his wallet and her hand, and the slitted eyes opened to reveal blue eyes with a hint of green. Rangiku was not sure about the green, but something told her it was there. His eyes flicked over her and he asked, "Do I know you?

"Aw, most people say I'm pretty unforgettable," she said, looking over the ID. "I'm Rangiku. Now, I know Steve and Frank here, but you're new, mm? Do you work with Steve?"

"Gin Ichimaru, pleased ta meetcha. I work fer Steve" he said, staring at Rangiku. Unlike most men, he stared at her eyes, and not at her breasts. He did not seem impressed with her figure at all, which offended her a little bit, but if his gaze did not unnerve her so much, she would probably have thought it charming.

Rangiku broke his gaze, looking anywhere but his direction in a hurry. "Okay then, I'll get those drinks sent in for you."

"Someone's a boob man," Frank said, laughing as she walked away.

"Looks like we took him to the right place," Steven said.

"Maybe," Gin said, but Rangiku thought he was not really agreeing.

She rang up the order on the touch-screen computer and yelled over her shoulder, "Bar please!" With any luck, by the time Rangiku walked up to the bar, the bartender, Trisha, might her order nearly finished.

Trish was filling a pint with Sam Adams, two uncapped bottles waiting on her tab. Rangiku tossed her ticket into the receipt bin and took the necks of two bottles in one hand, the draft in the other, and made her way back towards the table. The bottles clinked as she set them down.

She folded her arms on the high top and leaned towards the three. "Well boys, have you had a chance to look over the menu?"

Steve and Frank ordered crab legs, a Friday night special.

Gin said, "Guess I'll get the same."

"You know," Rangiku said. "I get the feeling you might like the boneless wings more. The parmesan garlic sauce is great." She frowned; she should have been promoting the specials.

"We'll do tha' then," he said.

Rangiku put their order in and saw to her other tables, printing off a couple checks, bussing tables, and serving crab legs. When the cook called her name again, she brought the food back to Steve's table. She dropped if off quickly; it was a busy night.

A bit later, she returned to check on their meal, "Anything else I can get for you?"

"I'll take another Budweiser. After that, why don't you sit down with us for a bit, rest your feet?" Steve said.

"Ah, sure, I'll see if I can't manage that," she said, it would give her a much better tip, but she would have to sit next to Gin. She wanted to put him under her "creeper" customer category.

The restaurant slowed down, and by the time she had a breather, she was ready to sit down. So she came over to Steve's table—her manager liked it when she sat with customers after all.

Steve and Frank both ordered another Budweiser, but Gin had not even finished half of his Sam Adams; she brought the drinks over and sat on the bar stool by Gin. "Well boys, I tell you what, it's been a busy night. It's nice to finally sit down."

"So, Rangiku, how're things? Settled into working here all right?"

"Oh, things here are great. Last time we talked I was pretty nervous; it was my first week," she said, talking in quick tones filled in with lots of smiles and laughing, occasionally leaning forward to enhance her assets. "But I guess I must be a natural, I got used to it all fast. So new boy, how'd you end up working with Steve?"

"Jus' finished up my masters, moved down from Connecticut fer the job."

"Your masters? But you're only twenty-three." And his accent was terrible, how did he speak like that and still sound so good?

"Gin's a real go-getter," Steve said. "Started college at seventeen, got his BA in three years, his masters in another three."

"Wow, so you're a really smart one, huh?" Rangiku glanced at him. "I did a little college, but sometimes things don't work out the way we want them to, y'know? So, Frank, did you ever manage to ask out that hottie you saw at the gym?"

The bantered for awhile, until Gin began picking on Frank. She smacked his arm, wondering how much trouble he liked to cause. "Be nice. You'll scare him. Frank, don't listen to Gin. He's mean." She made a face at Gin, then made sure to laugh to wipe away any offense, even if she meant what she said.

Rangiku left after that, seating some late stragglers in her section, and brought three checks to Gin's table. She was so caught up with taking care of the new table she barely managed to call a good night to them as they left.

A bit later, Rangiku made it back to the table and picked up the checks, mentally going over her tips, seven each from Steve and Frank, but ten from Gin, though he had the smallest bill. He was definitely an odd one. Rangiku shrugged it off. If only all her tables tipped like that, then she could afford a new designer purse.

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What'd you think?


	5. Chapter 04

I'm tired of working, ugh. Need sleeeep, as usual. I have a boring life.

**Thanks** to: Solar Kitty, roystealer, OhayouLovelesskun, Ayamichan34, PunkRockHolly, NaruHinaFanboy, cool guy 33, Sonozaki-sama, khorik, and dnie

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**Chapter 4**

That night was the first time Gin had remembered a dream in years. It was a short scene, and most of it was a blur, and all was silent. There was a hazy man, he could not recall a single detail about the man, but he carried a sword, and that was crystal clear. The sword pierced a man's back. Gin felt he knew the man, but name and knowledge slipped away like oil in water.

The sword kept going, it reached his heart. No, it reached the heart of a woman, the waitress. Blood pooled around her as her eyes lost the gleam of life.

Gin woke up covered in sweat, a silent scream tearing at his throat.

He sat up and brushed his hair out of his eyes. After a moment, he slid out of bed and padded into the kitchen. After the dream, the feel of the cold wood on his feet was a welcome reminder of reality. He got a glass of water and sat at the kitchen table, sipping it slowly. He knew it was nothing more than a dream, but he could not shake the feeling of horror and sadness, even as a strange undertone of guilt laced it.

Gin wondered if maybe he really did work too much. Here he was at 3:23 in the morning, rankled by an odd dream about a waitress. After awhile, Gin rested his chin on folded hands. He wished he had stopped the man who gave that order, before it had ever been spoken.

However, it was just a dream, so he knew he should stop thinking about it altogether. Why he let it bother him was beyond him, except that it was very early and he should be asleep. For now, he would make do with a shower to was away the sheen of now-dry sweat.

The familiarity of the shower eased him so that when he slipped back into bed, his thoughts drifted away to let him sleep easily the rest of the night.

The next week, however, began to wear on him. Every night, he had the same dream and it became harder to loosen from his thoughts. He was awake longer and longer after each night as he remembered another detail here and there, filling in some of the blanks in the dream. The blond man was Kira Izuru, the despicable man who gave the order was Aizen though he still knew no given name for the man. Gin recalled the clang of steal and the tang of blood in the air. The sensations could be so vivid it felt real, terribly real.

It compelled Gin to see the waitress again, but it was not until almost two weeks later that he gave in. He called before hand, just to make sure she would be there. The trip would be pointless otherwise.

Once he was there, he was greeted to a chorus of "Welcome to Hooters". However, a thin redhead approached him. "Is a booth all right?"

"Is Rangiku here today?" Gin asked, he did not see her anywhere.

"Oh, yeah. Sure." The waitress showed him to a table near the door. "She'll be with you in a second."

Gin watched her walk off; the waitress was not happy about his choice. That did not bother him, after all, the only reason he had come was to see Rangiku again. He wanted to know why she was stealing away his sleep.

"It's you," Rangiku said. "Gin."

"Ya remembered my name."

"You're kind of hard to forget with that hair of yours," Rangiku said. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"Iced tea, two lemons."

She walked off, and Gin looked around the restaurant. There were hardly any customers. He had hoped that would be the case; he knew it was much more likely that Rangiku would talk with him then.

A short while later, Rangiku sat with him as he worked on fries and a philly sandwich. "Whatcha do fer fun?" Gin met her gaze and held it.

"I mostly work," she said. "I go shopping a lot too."

"Ya wanna do anything else besides workin' here?"

"We'll see. Maybe, if something worked out," she said, breaking his gaze and toying with her hair. "What about you, what do you do for fun?"

"Work. Get ahead."

"That actually sounds really boring. There has to be something exciting you've done lately."

"I moved from New York to here about a week before I firs' came here," Gin said. "Guess I should unpack and such some time."

"You're one of those people who won't have unpacked five years from now, aren't you?"

"Makes it easier if I wanna move again. Them boxes are a pain ta mess with," he said. Gin stared into her eyes, searching for something that would tell him why he dreamed what he did.

"You move a lot then?"

"Nah, jus' sounded better 'an saying I can' be bothered with it."

"So why'd you come back? This didn't seem like your kind of place."

"Ah, well, I dunno. I jus' keep havin' this dream, an' yer in it. So I came back," he said. Not only was he unsure why he had told her that, he was fairly certain he had said something very much wrong.

" A dream," she said. "You're dreaming about me, and now you're asking for me at work. That's kind of creepy. Look, I'll finish up with you today, but please don't ask for me again."

"Ah, I'm sorry. I didn' mean ta make ya uncomfortable," Gin said, watching her, wondering if there was some way he could make it up to her. "Go ahead an' tab me out then. Ya don' have ta talk to me anymore. I'll jus' pay an' finish my food an' get outta here."

Rangiku stood abruptly and walked off quickly to get his check. Gin sighed. He hated that he had upset her. He toyed with people constantly, and he never cared. This woman was different. He wondered if it was because she was in the dream, or if she was in the dream because she had drawn his attention in a different way from everyone else. Whatever the reason was, he did not like the change one bit.

Gin paid his check and wolfed down the last few bites of his sandwich. He was gone before Rangiku came near to get his change. He told himself, back to work, back to work. Forget all this dreaming nonsense.

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What'd you all think? Back to Rangiku next chapter.


	6. Chapter 05

My grandparents are in town. Busy, busy time, blah. Got a mini-promotion at work too. I'm going to be working more nights at the bar because I did such an awesome job one night.

**Thanks** to: cool guy 33, Solar Kitty, PunkRockHolly, Ayamichan34, Master Solo, Sonozaki-sama, and NaruHinaFanboy

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**Chapter 5**

Dreams were common to Rangiku, colorful and vivid. She dreamed of unicorns and dragons, fabulous parties and dances, and a slew of things that made her smile. What she did not do was have nightmares. So when Rangiku sat straight up in bed, soaked in sweat and shivering, she did not quite know what to do to calm down.

First, she tried thinking about the wretched affair. A sword, flesh against flesh. The more she thought about it, the sicker she felt.

Finally, she gave up and went into the kitchen to chew on some Rolaids until her stomach stopped churning.

Three hard nights later, Rangiku saw the entire dream. The grinning fox-man she had served apologizing even as she was the one who held a sword to his throat, hand hard around his sword arm. He had betrayed everyone, her especially. She felt like dead stone in the dream.

Rangiku woke up and ran to the toilet and threw up.

Every night, bed time became something to fear, an agonizing thing she had to do. The dream broke her heart because she loved the man in the dream and it tore at her every time because he did not love her. He had not even cared for her; she had been nothing but a toy, just like everyone else.

Work was beginning to wear on Rangiku after nights of little sleep. She had a half-eaten kids meal off to one side and she rested her head on the small table in the break room. This would eat into her tips, but she was just too tired to care.

When Maria came into the break room to tell her she had a customer, Rangiku groaned and said, "You wanna take him?"

"Can't. He requested you, sorry," Maria said. "You okay?"

"I've been having stupid nightmares and they keep waking me up at night," Rangiku said and used the table to push herself up. "Oh well, I guess I'll go take his order."

Rangiku trudged to her section in a daze until she was three feet away. Then her head snapped up. "It's you," Rangiku said, feeling sick all over again. For whatever reason she dreamed about a guy who looked like him, she had no idea, maybe to warn her about him. Rangiku hated him. "Gin."

"Ya remembered my name," he said. He was still grinning that strange chesire cat smile.

"You're kind of hard to forget with that hair of yours," Rangiku said. Not to mention when your doppelganger haunts my dreams. I wouldn't mind if that sword slipped in those dreams of mine, at this point. But I don't have any proof he really is a bad guy. Play nice. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"Iced tea, two lemons."

Great. No beer. Lower tip for her. Then again, Rangiku remembered his unusually high tip, even for her. Maybe she would get lucky that way again. Rent was due and she had taken two customers the entire day.

When Rangiku brought out a philly cheese sandwich and fries, she sat down across from him. Men always tipped better when they had a good view of her spectacular boobs.

"Whatcha do fer fun?" Gin said, meeting her eyes. Rangiku had a hard time looking away. In fact, she could not look away. Those blue-green eyes were mesmerizing. She realized it was the first time she had really seen his eyes.

"I mostly work," she said, deciding to keep it light, boring. "I go shopping a lot too."

"Ya wanna do anything else besides workin' here?"

"We'll see. Maybe, if something worked out," she said, finally looking away and tugging at her hair. "What about you, what do you do for fun?"

"Work. Get ahead."

"That actually sounds really boring," she said and meant it. Everyone has to have some sort of hobby or some fascinating story. "There has to be something exciting you've done lately."

"I moved from New York to here about a week before I firs' came here," Gin said. "Guess I should unpack and such some time."

"You're one of those people who won't have unpacked five years from now, aren't you?"

"Makes it easier if I wanna move again. Them boxes are a pain ta mess with," he said.

"You move a lot then?" Maybe somehow she had met him before, imprinting his unusual features into her mind. She had been up and down the west coast.

"Nah, jus' sounded better 'an saying I can' be bothered with it." Then no. Rangiku had dreamed of going to New York when she was younger. She was not so sure now.

"So why'd you come back? This didn't seem like your kind of place."

"Ah, well, I dunno. I jus' keep havin' this dream, an' yer in it. So I came back," he said, and his smile was gone.

" A dream," Rangiku said, mind racing, and she wondered if it could burst like a heart could burst if it beat too much too hard. She was too afraid to know what he dreamed about, if only because she dreamed of him. "You're dreaming about me, and now you're asking for me at work. That's kind of creepy. Look, I'll finish up with you today, but please don't ask for me again."

"Ah, I'm sorry. I didn' mean ta make ya uncomfortable," Gin said, frowning. "Go ahead an' tab me out then. Ya don' have ta talk to me anymore. I'll jus' pay an' finish my food an' get outta here."

Rangiku walked to the computer as quickly as she could without making the manager wonder. She just felt too drained from Gin to deal with a report on top of everything else. She printed off the ticket and drew a heart around the final price with a swirly thank you across the top in pink. She always did that. Rangiku frowned and threw the paper away. She printed a new receipt, void of any such thing.

By the time she made it back to his table, he was gone, leaving her a nearly twenty dollar tip on his fourteen dollar meal. Rangiku wondered if it was an apology, or the creep trying to get in good with her again. She frowned when she realized she wanted it to be an apology even though the latter would let her hate him a little more.

All Rangiku wanted to do when her shift was over was to take a nap. Instead, she went shopping. Sleeping was a scary sort of thing, maybe now more than ever.

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It's pretty interesting for me to be writing both perspectives O.o


	7. Chapter 06

Getting very close to finishing this. There will be 11 chapters total. I think after it's finished, I'm going to re-organize they story into Gin's, then Rangiku's perspectives, but I figure I ought to finish the way I started.

**Thanks** to: Ayamichan34, Solar Kitty-chan, Master Solo, PunkRockHolly, kimmiYO, and OhayouLovelesskun

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****Chapter 6**

Gin shoved his hands into his pockets as he wandered across a street. He had the vague notion that he was heading towards the beach, but for all of the attention he had been paying, Gin could have been going inland. Someone shoved into him, he took a step back, frowning a touch. No one ever managed to sneak up on Gin. He did the sneaking, and when he did it, he did it well, scaring all sorts of people, creating all sorts of mischief.

This mix of insomnia and unpleasant thinking was beginning to take its toll on him; yesterday he had done some of his work twice.

Gin stopped with a sigh and looked around. It was getting dark. He must have been walking for hours. Nothing was familiar, street names were all strange, but it did not particularly bother him. He would find his way home one way or another. Gin just needed a familiar street, or a taxi. Probably the taxi, Gin decided. It was getting late, and he had work in the morning. Walking all the way back would probably take quite some time, wherever back was.

His cell phone was on his desk charging. Gin scowled at the sky for a moment. He would leave his phone at home on the day he got lost. Gin started off again with a shrug. A gas station or a convenience store would do the trick.

A quick look around showed him some crummy apartment buildings with graffiti. He figured it was not the best part of town, but then, Gin had spent a fair amount of time in some bad parts of cities.

Two random turns brought Gin into an alley. It had not seemed all that bad from the entrance; a light shivered there. There was no other light deeper in the alley, however, just some gross smell and scurrying. Rats, probably. Gin began to turn.

Then there were other sounds. The thud of a body hitting the side of brick, feet struggling to find good footing. Then, a low, velvety voice, "Let me go."

"Right after I have some fun with you, sweetheart," a man said. A woman screamed, a hushed, strangled sound.

Gin swallowed hard. Rangiku's voice, Rangiku's scream. He curled his hands into fists for a moment, then forced them to relax halfway. He did not approach at a run, rather, he made his feet silent as his eyes began to adjust to the dark alleyway.

A snigger warned him about a second man, while a third leered. Well, all right then. Gin had won plenty of unfair fights before. He took in the two men and Rangiku for a moment, deciding how to help her the best. She would not be angry with him for saving her from these creeps, right? He hoped not. The sniggering lout had a fresh black eye forming, he was going to bet Rangiku had put up a fight. The problem was, a girl against three big guys just does not work, even if she did put up a damn good fight.

The first man had Rangiku pinned up against a wall. The leerer reached out to touch Rangiku's heaving breast. His hand never made it; Gin flew into him, knocking him away. His face locked into a smiling grimace. He knew it was unsettling, that was part of why he liked it.

All at once, all three men turned to fight Gin, he still spared Rangiku a glance. The first man had just released her. His fist was aimed at Gin, but Rangiku rewarded her captor with a knee placed hard and fast between his legs. After a few moments, Gin stopped, breathing quick and fast.

After a moment, he felt Rangiku's eyes on him. "I ain't stalkin' ya."

"Thanks," she said, so demurely, so quietly, he had to strain to hear it.

"Ain't a good place fer a pretty girl a' night," Gin said and unbuttoned his shirt, gingerly shrugging out of it, making sure not to look at her. He held the shirt in Rangiku's direction.

"What're you doing?"

"Yer shirt's a mess from them trash."

Gin saw her glance down from the corner of his eye. Rangiku grabbed the shirt and tugged it on. "Were you stalking me?"

"Wouldja believe it if I said no?" Gin asked. "I wasn'. Jus' takin' a walk, got real lost. I ain't as creepy as I look."

He meant it; somehow, the idea of her finding him frightening was terrible.

"Weird place for a walk."

Gin shrugged and immediately wished he had not. He could barely hold back a grimace. There was probably a broken rib on his left side. "Wasn' paying attention. I like ta wander aroun'." He looked her over now that she was decent. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I guess. I mean, a few bruises but…"

"But you're gonna have nightmares, righ'?" Gin said in a dark, scathing voice. "Scum like tha' don' deserve to live,"

Rangiku shrugged. "I always have nightmares."

From her expression, Gin guessed she had not meant to tell him that. "I'm sorry."

"Are you okay?"

Gin blinked up at her. "'Course. Take more 'an a bit o' trash to take me down."

"Yeah, you're kind of scary."

"Ah, I ain't tha' bad am I?"

"Well, I'd hate to be on the wrong side of you in a fight," Rangiku said. "Look, I know you're not okay."

"Nothin' fer ya ta worry about. I can take care o' myself." Perhaps he did sound a bit too defensive there.

"Oh, for god's sake," Rangiku said. "You have a gash across your cheek, and your lip is a little bloody, and your left side's starting to bruise. You broke a rib didn't you? And it's all because I'm just… stupid."

"Look, yer not stupid. Just overly beautiful. 'Sides, seems if it'd just been one guy ya woulda been pretty okay."

"Self-defense courses."

"Lemme call ya a cab or somethin'," he said. She did not seem to mind talking to him right now, but he did not want her to ask him to go away again.

"Good luck finding a cab around here."

"Damn, that's what I was lookin' fer in th' firs' place. I get lost th' one day I leave my phone at home," he said. "Then again, I guess I'm glad I did. Might not've been around then."

Rangiku looked at the ground for a long time. "Okay, look. My apartment's really near here. Why don't you come up and I can at least give your shirt back, maybe make you something to eat. I mean, you really helped me there…"

"Don' worry about it, Ran-chan," he said and promptly wished he could bite his tongue off. The nickname had just slipped out from somewhere. "Ah, sorry. I ferget I'm a lil' forward an'—"

"No, no, it's okay," Rangiku said, but she looked a little odd.

"Don' like it?"

"I guess…. It's… I do like it."

"But yer frownin'."

"Do you want dinner or not?"

Gin could tell when a subject was being changed. "Ya told me ta never come back where ya work again 'cause I'm a creep. I ain't sure tha's a good idea."

"I guess… I don't really think you're a creep," Rangiku murmured. "I mean, you saved me, gave me a shirt so I wouldn't be indecent… I should be safe with my savior walking me back to my apartment, right? Just because I had a nightmare about you doesn't mean anything, I guess. Though maybe you should go straight to a hospital—"

"I'll walk ya back," he said, interrupting her. "Don' need a hospital fer a few scrapes. I'ma big boy."

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I have a new addiction to coconut m&ms. What's your favorite candy?


	8. Chapter 07

Sorryfor the huge delay in updating this. The story is almost complete though, so updates should be very regular now for the final chapters (there will be five more chapters, I believe, after this). Life got the best of me. School starts up this Thursday. Oh boy. It's been so long since I attended classes at this place, it'll be weird. Ah well.

**Thanks**: to all my readers and reviewers Mayora, aznphoenix95, Sonozaki-sama, Cool guy 33, Ayamichan34, Solar Kitty, Rhirhirhi, RabitBleachFan, PunkRockHolly, summerrayah, TeenageNeko, blackteaplease, Katiegirl101199, capslocknanao, karathemurphster, SwirlzSmile, Scarlet Apples, Mary Akataki, and Cera

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**Chapter 7**

Rangiku walked down the street, two small bags swinging, one from each hand. She was humming some song she had heard from work. It was starting to get a bit dark, but Rangiku did not mind; she had lived in the area long enough to know her way around, even in the dark.

It was true the street did not look as friendly as it did during the day when a steady stream of people meandered up and down the sidewalks and cars hooted and honked in the street. Half the shops were closed up too, which made the area look a little deserted. The day was a much better time; then there was a bakery open that had the best éclairs Rangiku had ever had in her life.

A breeze shivered up Rangiku's spine and she tried to pull her jacket zipper higher, but it would only go so far; her breasts were in the way, as always.

"Hey there, Sweetheart," a man said. He had a beer gut and yellow teeth.

"Go away," Rangiku said. Guys like him usually needed a flat, unambiguous refusal. Some guys were flat out creepy.

"Why'd we wanna do that?" Another man said, leering at her. His hazel eyes traveled over her body to settle on her chest. "We just wanna talk with a pretty girl like yourself for awhile, isn't that right?"

"That's right," the first man said, a third man just behind him, grinning. "Maybe steal a kiss, just see how things go, huh?"

The tiny hairs on the back of Rangiku's neck seemed to shiver as they rose up in goosebumps. It was a feeling she got when trouble was brewing.

She threw down the fast food bags and took of running, thankful she had kept her work shoes on. They may not have been pretty, but they were tennis shoes, and she could run much faster in them.

The men followed; Rangiku nearly cried when the footsteps pounding on the pavement grew louder. Rangiku ran in whichever direction seemed easier for her. A hand grabbed her arm, jarring her shoulder. It made her feel like a rubber band; for a moment, she thought she was going to be free, but then she snapped back into the man's pudgy chest.

Ahead of her was a dead end. Rangiku was in trouble, a lot of it. She made a last ditch effort to run back the way she came, past the men.

Hazel Eyes caught her easily and shoved her deeper into the alley. She took stumbling steps, nearly tripping over bottles and old trash. She tried faking a stumble to fight the guy, but he saw through her and backhanded her. Rangiku hit the wall and swallowed hard. She punched out with everything she had. She met bone; her hand flared sparks in her head.

Hazel Eyes cursed and shoved her hard enough into the brick wall Rangiku felt like her teeth were rattling. He held a hand up to his eye for a moment. She said, "Let me go."

"Right after I have some fun with you, sweetheart," he said and pinned her arms around her head with one hand. With his other hand, he covered her mouth.

Yellow Teeth tore her shirt open and she screamed, or tried to. Hazel Eyes's hand was hard against her mouth, too hard for her to even bite him. Yellow Teeth's hand moved slowly, almost reverently towards her breasts. Rangiku closed her eyes tight.

A second later, she heard a thud, a scuffle. Hazel Eyes let her go and Rangiku snapped her eyes open. All at once, she saw a silver-haired man facing off with her attackers. Her customer, Gin. For a moment, she was even more frightened when she saw the expression on his face. Then she felt safe, much safer than she should have. Right then, Gin did not feel like a creepy stalker customer, but a savior.

The grinner stepped towards Gin, and Hazel Eyes lifted his hand to throw his fist at Gin. Rangiku growled and shoved her knee up with as much speed and force as she could muster. She was a little amazed when her attacker went down to his knees, clutching his nether region. Then Gin was flying around the three men like a demonic poltergeist until the men stumbled and ran and tripped out of the alley.

Gin stopped moving, breathing quick and fast, watching the alleyway. Rangiku stared at him. All at once, he looked at her and said, "I ain't stalkin' ya."

"Thanks," she said, having trouble getting the word out.

"Thanks," she said, so demurely, so quietly, he had to strain to hear it.

"Ain't a good place fer a pretty girl a' night," Gin said and unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it off, looking away. He held the shirt out to her.

"What're you doing?"

"Yer shirt's a mess from them trash."

Rangiku looked down and snatched the shirt, buttoning it up quickly. "Were you stalking me?"

"Wouldja believe it if I said no?" Gin asked. "I wasn'. Jus' takin' a walk, got real lost. I ain't as creepy as I look."

She knew she should not, but she believed him. Rangiku hoped it was not because he had rescued her. She hoped even more she was not walking into another attack. Rangiku was having trouble raising her defenses though. Her body wanted her to relax, to let Gin take care of everything now. His presence made her stop worrying about anyone else hurting her; she felt taken care of. At last, she said, "Weird place for a walk."

Gin shrugged and he paled, lips twitching faintly. "Wasn' paying attention. I like ta wander around. You okay?"

"Yeah, I guess. I mean, a few bruises but…"

"But you're gonna have nightmares, righ'?" Gin said in a dark, scathing voice. "Scum like tha' don' deserve to live,"

Rangiku shrugged. "I always have nightmares." She should not have said that. Rangiku did not want to tell anyone, especially him, that. Those dreams were plaguing her.

"I'm sorry."

"Are you okay?"

Gin blinked, and Rangiku was startled by the brilliant blue as much as his surprise she would ask that. "'Course. Take more 'an a bit o' trash to take me down."

"Yeah, you're kind of scary."

"Ah, I ain't tha' bad am I?"

"Well, I'd hate to be on the wrong side of you in a fight," Rangiku said and meant it. There had been something almost demonic about him when he fought. "Look, I know you're not okay." The paling and hiding a grimace proved that.

"Nothin' fer ya ta worry about. I can take care o' myself," Gin snapped at her. It made her angry; it was not as if she had insinuated something insulting.

"Oh, for god's sake," Rangiku said, rising to his tone. "You have a gash across your cheek, and your lip is a little bloody, and your left side's starting to bruise. You broke a rib didn't you? And it's all because I'm just… stupid."

"Look, yer not stupid. Just overly beautiful. 'Sides, seems if it'd just been one guy ya woulda been pretty okay."

"Self-defense courses." Sort of, more or less. She had been told what to do if she was attacked though, and she was a born fighter.

"Lemme call ya a cab or somethin'," he said.

"Good luck finding a cab around here," she said. Good luck getting her to pay for one either. There was public transportation for a reason.

"Damn, that's what I was lookin' fer in th' firs' place. I get lost th' one day I leave my phone at home," he said. "Then again, I guess I'm glad I did. Might not've been around then."

Rangiku was not sure what to say. Gin confused her constantly. But he had saved her, he was hurt and lost now. She hated that he was hurt, it made her want to mother him, take care of him and hold him tight until he was all better. "Okay, look. My apartment's really near here. Why don't you come up and I can at least give your shirt back, maybe make you something to eat. I mean, you really helped me there…"

"Don' worry about it, Ran-chan," he said and had the decency to look abashed at calling her by a nickname. "Ah, sorry. I ferget I'm a lil' forward an'—"

"No, no, it's okay," Rangiku said, but she allowed no one to call her that. It was always Rangiku or Matsumoto. But when Gin said "Ran-chan" it seemed to flow off his lips like magic, and Rangiku wanted to hold it close.

"Don' like it?"

"I guess…. It's… I do like it."

"But yer frownin'."

"Do you want dinner or not?" Rangiku changed the subject, letting her annoyance at his questions shine through. The trouble was she was not annoyed by him wanting to know, but that she did not know.

Gin could tell when a subject was being changed. "Ya told me ta never come back where ya work again 'cause I'm a creep," he said. "I ain't sure tha's a good idea."

"I guess… I don't really think you're a creep," Rangiku said, she never had, really. It was all the nightmares. Who knows what those dreams really meant, even if they did plague her. "I mean, you saved me, gave me a shirt so I wouldn't be indecent… I should be safe with my savior walking me back to my apartment, right? Just because I had a nightmare about you doesn't mean anything, I guess," Rangiku said and started on hastily before Gin asked any questions. "Though maybe you should go straight to a hospital—"

"I'll walk ya back," he said, interrupting her. "Don' need a hospital fer a few scrapes. I'ma big boy."

Rangiku did not really agree, but she decided it was probably pointless to argue it. Instead, she would do what she could do for him in her home.

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Anyone else up to date on the Bleach manga? I think it's at 415 now. My oh my, is all I shall say out here. So what country are you from? I'm from the USA. What's your favorite snack? I think I'm victim to cheetos, though I'm getting rather tired of them now. I also have an addiction to coconut m&ms now.


	9. Chapter 08

Well, somewhere along the way, part of this story got messed up, and I lost a chapter of Gin's POV and then I got all confused, what with using a very, very tiny screen in which I can only see a small amount of typing, soooo this story will be just switching POVs as they were written, with no more overlapping chapters. Which is fine, at first I liked the double POVs, but later, it just turned into a near copy of the chapters, so easier reading for everyone, but sadly, only one chapter after this, then an epilogue.

**Thanks **to all my readers and reviewers: roystealer, capslock-nanao, khorik, karathemurphster, Mary Akataki, Vampolka, Ayamichan34, Cera, Dellanotte, Solar Kitty, Cool guy 33, Sonozaki-sama, worldwithoutend, and PunkRockHolly.

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Chapter 8

Gin fell into step beside Rangiku as she led them to her apartment. She glanced at him every other step. She felt a little chaotic; her head was spinning, and she could hardly think. Right now, Gin felt safe. After getting attacked by those damned men, Rangiku just wanted someone to trust for a little while.

"Yer shakin'."

"I am?"

"Yup," Gin watched her. "Scary thing ta happen."

"Yeah," Rangiku sighed. "I mean, I've had close calls before but…"

Gin quirked a crooked smile. "Not fer me."

"Well, you look like trouble," Rangiku said as she unlocked a door leading into a small foyer.

"Do not," Gin said. "'Sides, you look all kinds o' trouble."

"You have that weird smile. You look like lots of trouble," Rangiku reassured him. "It's not my fault I look the way I do."

"Can't fault the way ya look at all."

A short elevator trip brought them to the fourth floor and around the corner brought them to 4E. Rangiku waltzed in, letting Gin follow her in. "Home sweet home." She loved it; it was cluttered and colorful, sheer scarves crossed the ceiling, making the room glow in brilliant hues and somehow all the mismatched stuff seemed to go together in a homey mess. Except it was small. She hated that part, but there was not any helping it.

"Suits ya," Gin said.

Rangiku gave him a quick smile and said, "Make yourself at home." She left him in the living room and dug out a first aid kit. At the very least, she could get the gash on his cheek taken care of.

She saw Gin gingerly sitting down on a kitchen chair, back ramrod straight. His side was definitely hurting. She went back to her bathroom and grabbed a bottle of extra strength Tylenol. She walked over to him. "Let's get you cleaned up."

"Ah, don' worry about it."

"Too late, I have the first aid kit out and everything," she said. "Besides, if you don't let me do this, I won't give you any food."

Gin sighed and mumbled, "Better be damn good food."

Rangiku ignored him and dabbed at his cheek with a damp paper towel. It wasn't fancy, but it would have to do. She felt Gin's jaw tense beneath her hands as she worked, though his expression showed nothing. Rangiku touched him much more gently then, as carefully as she would a kitten. Then she hesitated. "This is going to sting, a lot."

"Jus' do it."

Still, she hesitated. It seemed wrong to hurt him. However, she knew that if she did not disinfect his cheek even worse things could happen. Rangiku soaked a cotton ball in some sort of iodine disinfectant solution and laid it across his cheek for a moment. She knew she was supposed to use a syringe to spray the stuff into the wound to clean it better, but she did not have a syringe, and that sounded even more painful.

Gin hissed through clenched teeth.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Rangiku said, pulling the cotton away and wiped soothing Neosporin across the cut. With her other hand, Rangiku stroked Gin's hair lightly. Finally, she sealed the wound with liquid bandage. "The rest won't be as bad."

"Mmm," Gin said, but he reminded Rangiku of a content cat as she stroked his hair. Abruptly, she drew her hand away. Green-blue eyes flashed open briefly at her, giving her some unfathomable look before vanishing again. "I kin do th' rest, if ya wanna start makin' food."

"Well, I guess I could… Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"I'll definitely be fine. Been an orphan since I was four," Gin said. "Of course I know how to take care of myself."

"Me too," Rangiku murmured and got up. She began looking through her refrigerator. "But I was older…"

"Tha's no good at all. Should always have some family aroun' somewheres to call."

"Do you have any family?"

"Nah," he said. "That's how I know family's important, I guess."

"Maybe you're right."

"Course I am, I'm all kinds o' smart."

"More like all kinds of cocky, anyway."

Gin was not entirely sure he was supposed to hear that statement. "I can be cocky an' smart."

"Right," Rangiku said, but she was smiling. Gin liked that; it was because of him. "So how about pizza bread?"

"If it resembles food, I'll eat it."

Gin watched Rangiku cut a French loaf in half. The she poured on spaghetti sauce and added sliced meatballs, mushrooms, and cheese to the halves. She stuck the mess into the oven and pulled a slightly wilted salad out of the refrigerator. He could not say he minded. It had been a long time since anyone had made food for him like this. Familiar, too, like his dreams. It unnerved him, even as he felt at ease in Rangiku's kitchen.

"Eat up," Rangiku said as she set a plate in front of him. It held two slices of pizza bread and a heap of salad.

Gin dug in. "Ain't bad at all."

"Are you saying you thought I'd be a bad cook?"

"Nah," Gin said. "Tastes like home-cooking."

"That's because it is home-cooking."

"I mean like somethin' familiar an' good, like I've had it all me life. Guess ya must be a real good cook."

Rangiku set her fork down and stared at her plate. "What… what was your dream about? It wasn't pervy, was it?"

Gin heard the pleading at the end of her voice, so he told her the truth. "Dreamed it was my fault ya died. I was th' villain, all dressed in white. The good guys, they was dressed in black. An' Aizen didn' like tha' I liked ya, so he had ya killed. Killed him straight after, but it was too late, ya was dead an' my world ended. Guess a kid died, Izuru, felt real bad 'bout tha' too. He was my… lieutenant, I guess. Real good kid, an' it was all my fault."

Rangiku stared at him for a long time.

"Wha? I got somethin' on my face?" He asked, keeping his voice light and airy. He refused to let her know how nervous that look made him, how much he hated sharing that dream that made him the bad guy.

"Aizen, what did he and Izuru look like?"

"Eh, guess he had short brown hair, kinda brushed back all messy, brown, cruel eyes. But I dunno, I always though' everyone wanted ta trust him at some point. All the arrancar did. He was real charmin' and all that jazz. An' Izuru, well, he had kinda an emo haircut, I guess, but he was a blond, real mopey kid, but nice. Think he tried real hard, but let life get the better of 'im y'know?"

Rangiku set her glass down hard enough to splash water onto the table. "In… in my dream, I pressed a sword to your throat and held your wrist tight so… you couldn't draw your own sword. You wished that your capture lasted longer, you apologized, and then," Rangiku said and paused for a long moment. "Then a man called Aizen summoned these weird lights and you and he and some other man floated up into the sky. But you were all in black, all of us were. You betrayed me, all of us."

Gin's mouth was dry. He took several sips of water, but it did not help, nor would words come to him. Finally, he said, "Yer creepin' me out a little."

"Izuru… I want to say I knew someone like that, once upon a time," Rangiku said. "Aizen… How could we both have dreamed the same man?"

"Dunno. Too weird," Gin said as he pushed his empy plate away. "But it sure ain't doin' wonders fer me sleep."

"I've hardly slept since I met you."

"Still think I'm creepy as all hell?"

"I… no. I guess, I just wanted to, after that dream."

"I can see why."

"Anyway, um, do you want some dessert?"

"Love some."

"I don't suppose you like dried persimmons? I know it's kind of weird, but they're—"

"My favorite."

"Wow. Most people haven't even tried them, but they're just so yummy, and I always think about good things when I eat them," Rangiku said as she took the dishes over to the sink. Then she got out a box and placed it on the table.

Gin grabbed a persimmon, but then he offered it to Rangiku. "Ladies firs'."

It felt a little like a shock from static electricity, but he could feel it all the way up his arm, but yet he knew it was not a shock. It felt like déjà vu and something falling into place, being just right. He stared into Rangiku's equally bewildered face.

"What was that?" she said.

He meant to say "I don't know," but instead, a different set of words fell out of his mouth in a rush. "I love you."

"I know," Rangiku said. "I always loved you. Why couldn't you see it?"

Gin's head was throbbing, a slew on images flying past his mind's eye. "Guess I was jus' an idiot til' it was too late. Fer a genius, I was real dumb, wasn' I? Can ya ever forgive me?"

"All I wanted was you," Rangiku said, "I guess, I have no choice but to forgive you." Rangiku broke off and put her head in her hands and groaned. "My head hurts, I barely understand why I said that."

"Room's spinning," Gin said. "Felt like I just saw a bunch o' pieces of a past life." He had to speak slowly and concentrate on his words now, trying to sort through everything. "Do ya believe in reincarnation?"

"I think… I do now."

"Yeah, same here," Gin said. "I think… I should call a cab and go home. Sleep, make my head stop pounding, think…"

Rangiku nodded a little bit and handed him her cell phone, head on the table pillowed by one arm.

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Anyone have any good RanxGin oneshot ideas? I'm itching to write a oneshot again, haha! Do you prefer coffee, tea, or hot chocolate on a cold day? I'm a tea person myself. Do any of you speak other languages? I speak a small amount of Spanish.


	10. Chapter 09

Here's chapter nine, finally. I got a puppy yesterday, or rather my sister did. This little girl is absolutely adorable and weighs about 3 pounds. My 14 pound cat is totally afraid of the friendly, happy, sweet little puppy. He runs away and hides! Also, she makes my cats look HUGE O.O

**Thanks** to my readers and reviewers: Mapletree, Rizeru, capslocknanao, justjoy, Ayamichan34, cool guy 33, Cera, Mary Akataki, Solar Kitty, worldwithoutend, Master Solo, PunkRockHolly, karathemurphster, ashheart1212, Dellanotte, A girl who goes here everyday, blackteaplease, Lady Drama, venuslegacy9, and xGin

Wow. That's a lot of reviewers. You guys are sexy. Sexxxyyyy.**

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**Chapter 9**

In the end, Gin only remembered flashes of images that night with Rangiku, too brief to understand no matter how hard he thought of it. He just felt that he knew her, better than anyone else could ever know her. He had no idea what her favorite color was, or what she liked to do. Gin knew less about her than some girls he had only been on a single date with.

The dreams had changed, though, and he had gotten more sleep than he had in weeks. He still woke frequently, frustrated, feeling as if he had almost remembered something important. It was like the answer to a test question, but he had no idea what the question was, much less the answer; it was just beyond his reach. It made him feel crazy.

Still, he did not track Rangiku down. He did not go to Hooters and ask for her, nor did he sit in front of her apartment door until she appeared. That just would not be right, especially after Rangiku had asked him not to return to her place of work.

He spun around in his office chair for the umpteenth time.

"Hey, are you finished with that report yet?" Steve asked.

Gin just looked at him. It was a creepy stare, he knew, but it made Steve leave without a word. Then he prodded the report with his finger, as if it might suddenly come alive and ooze slime across his desk. He really should have some poor sap around to do his paperwork for him. The report was supposed to have been done three days ago. It was supposed to take four or five days of hard work to complete. He had not started it at all. Steve would probably try to fire him if he knew that, but Steve was a little afraid of Gin now, and Gin was willing to bet that he would be Steve's supervisor in a year.

If he actually did some work; even he could not get away with doing absolutely nothing while getting paid. It took him the rest of the day, including a working lunch, but he had the report done just before five. He loved being a genius.

Gin left five minutes early after dropping the report on Steve's lap, smirking at the expression on the man's face. He made it outside and felt the sun on his face and decided to walk home. The exercise might do him good, even if it would not clear his mind. Nothing seemed to.

His phone rang; he glanced at the screen and nearly ignored it; unknown numbers always seemed to be up to no good. But then maybe it would be a telemarketer, and then he could tell them off. That might make him feel a little better. "Yeah?"

"Gin?"

For a moment, Gin just stared into the distance. "Ran-chan?" How had she gotten his number? More importantly, why was she calling?

"You programmed your number in my phone."

He thought that sounded right, even if he had been in a strange dazed shock when he left Rangiku's apartment. "I guess I have good ideas sometimes."

"I should be mad at you for that."

"But yer callin' me now, so I'm glad I did," he said, almost regretting the words. "So, what's up?"

"I guess I wanted to ask… well, that night everything got so crazy. It was so weird, right?"

"Yeah," he said, then added, "My dreams changed." He wanted to keep talking to her for as long as he could.

"Me too, sometimes, I think," Rangiku said. "I still wake up a lot."

"Yeah, seems meetin' ya's been one big case of insomnia," he said. "Guess it ain't so bad though. Least there's always a pretty girl in me dreams."

Rangiku paused for awhile and Gin thought she was not going to say anything else for a moment. "Would you like to go to dinner with me? Maybe we could do something beforehand, like… like mini-golf or something."

Gin stared at his wall for a moment, stunned. "'Course I'd like ta. Be crazy not ta."

"Great," Rangiku said, sounding relieved. Gin had to wonder why; who on earth would turn her down? "So, what days work well for you?"

"Any evenings."

"What about Thursday night, around six?"

"Sure, I'll pick you up?"

"That'd be great," she said. "I guess then… I'll see you at six, Thursday."

Gin said good-bye and hung up, grinning. It felt like Christmas, one where there was a big package under the tree, full of exciting promise and intrigue. Thursday could not possibly come soon enough.

Gin knocked on Rangiku's door at two minutes before six. Even now, he was afraid she would not answer or would tell him to go away. There was some clattering on the other side of the door for several moments before Rangiku tugged the door open.

"Gin! You're early."

"Only by two minutes."

"Yeah, but I'm running late," Rangiku said, making a face. "You'll just have to wait inside, I guess."

"Fine by me," Gin said and held out a single flower to her.

"My favorite, I love chrysanthemums, especially pink ones."

"Good," Gin said and sat down on the couch. "They suit ya."

"You can watch TV or whatever, I'm going to finish getting ready," Rangiku said and ran off into her bathroom. Only half her hair had been curled.

Gin shook his head and flipped the television on. The channel was on the soap opera network. Gin could not help but wince. If that was really the sort of television she preferred he had a feeling there would be many arguments over the channel. Gin flipped to the discovery channel to watch something about the discovery of a mummy of an Egyptian queen who acted as king of Egypt long ago. It scared him a little that he could see that far ahead, as if Rangiku would always be a part of his life. But now that she was not ordering him away, he could not imagine being anywhere else.

Half an hour later, Rangiku finally left the bathroom and entered the living room. She twirled. "Well?"

Gin took in her voluptuous figure clad in a swirling skirt of many colors and a clinging little scrap of fabric that somehow contained her breasts, and silver bracelets jangled on her arms. He said, "Think yer the most beautiful women in th' world."

"You really do, don't you?" Rangiku said after a moment before smiling widely. "Let's go! We're going to go mini-golfing first, and then out to dinner at this cute Italian place I heard about, everyone I know who's been there said it's absolutely amazing."

Gin grinned and offered her his arm. "Yer chariot awaits."

"Huh, you have a car. I forgot."

He led her down and opened the door for her. She brought out the hidden gentleman in him; he was not sure what he thought about that at all.

"Oh wow, it's so nice," Rangiku said. "Wow, you must really be some higher up, huh?"

"Jus' gotta 'nother promotion," he said. He was now his boss's boss, to the poor man's shock. Gin was just too good to be stopped.

"Wow, and a promotion brought you out to this part of the country too, right?"

"Gonna be the CEO 'fore I'm thirty," he said.

"There's nowhere but the top for you, huh?" Rangiku said a little too quietly.

"Tha's true," he said. "Ambitious guy, I guess."

"I wonder where I'll end up," she said. "It's not like I'm ambitious or super smart, and I'm kind of lazy."

Gin watched her closely at a stoplight. "Think you'll do somethin' that makes ya happy."

"I want to live a beautiful life," she said. "And I want a pair of Christian Louboutin shoes."

They arrived at the mini-gold center and Rangiku proved unusually good, so much so that Gin did not believe she had only played twice before. It made him quite competitive. He lost, but only because Rangiku used every one of her feminine charms to distract him. He got eyefuls of her breasts, a perfect view of her butt as she bent over to pick up her ball, and he knew it was absolutely deliberate with the winks and kisses she kept blowing at him. Then, they had been tied, stroke for stroke. Rangiku had put her and on his butt, startling him so much his shot went very much awry.

"I win," Rangiku said, jumping into the hair, arms above her head.

"Ya cheated."

"All's fair in love and war."

"I'll get my revenge, don' ya worry."

"Oh, I'm so scared," Rangiku taunted him. "Let's go eat, I'm starving!"

"Yer terrible," he said.

"You think I'm adorable," Rangiku said in a reassuring tone.

"Sound awfully sure o' yerself there."

"Because I'm right."

"You are, are you?" Gin said, then pulled her close to him and kissed her.

Rangiku threw her arms around his neck and kissed him fervently. "I thought first kisses were at the end of first dates."

"I ain't a typical guy."

"And I'm not a typical woman," Rangiku said and pulled Gin to his car.

Gin wondered where the man who lived apart from everyone else had gone as they arrived at the restaurant. It seemed Rangiku had assaulted him until he could not do anything but live in the world she lived in. But so long as she was there, he did not mind being there.

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Anyone have any puppy advice? We've never had a puppy before. She needs to be house-broken and general training in everything. We also need to get the cats to get along with her . She does not realize a growling cat is an unhappy cat. Also, I have a pina colada strawberry smoothie. It's da bomb. Do you like smoothies? What kinds?


	11. Epilogue

And finally, the epilogue. I really, really enjoyed writing this part. Thank you, all of you, for your support and for reading and for especially for all the lovely reviews which really helped keep me writing. Love to you all!

**Thanks** especially to reviewers: PunkRockHolly, cool guy 33, capslock-nanao, Tinni, Ayamichan34, Lovely1, blackteaplease, Rizeru, Lady Drama, MissTeak, Solar Kitty, karathemurphster, DellaNotte, TeenageNeko, Alicia, and Mihara-chan

**Dedicated** to all of you who enjoyed the story!

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**Epilogue**

It had been a long time since Izuru had last been to the world of the living, not since before he became the captain of the third squad. The beach post was almost a vacation for him, would have truly been one, if not for the occasional hollow, which was just what he intended to use the post for. He thought he deserved it; he was certainly overdue the vacation, at least.

Izuru walked along the shore, enjoying the feel of the cold, wet sand between his toes, the sun hot on his back.

"Izuru!" A voice said, "Get back here!"

Izuru whipped around and stared. A little boy with silver hair and blue eyes was running towards him. The child grinned such a familiar, wicked grin that Izuru gasped. He had to be the reincarnation of Ichimaru. Then a little girl joined him; she had beautiful strawberry blond hair, and for a moment, Izuru thought true love had truly blessed his old captain. It passed quickly; the girl's eyes were not the same pale cornflower blue.

But who had called his name?

"Izuru, don't you dare get your sister to run off with you too!" The voice called.

Hand and hand, two people walked towards the children. This time, a tear slid down Izuru's cheek. There was no doubting who this couple was.

Matsumoto was heavier than he remembered, but then he realized she was pregnant. She would be Ichimaru-san now, if that was indeed his old captain's new name. Ichimaru startled him, though; his eyes were open, matching the greeny-blue of the two children. His smile was still there, but relaxed now, genuine.

"Get yer butt over 'ere, Izuru," Ichimaru said.

The little boy ran to Ichimaru and Izuru realized the child had his name. Maybe, on some level, they had remembered him. He felt impossibly honored.

Ichimaru stopped in front of him. "Do we know you?"

Rangiku nodded, "I'm sure we've met before."

Izuru smiled and said, "No, not in this lifetime anyway." He walked on a ways and looked back, watching the family. Izuru felt like crying again, in joy. Some twist of fate had brought Ichimaru and Matsumoto together again, but this time, things had gone the way they were meant to.

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Well, what'd you think? And who do you think Izuru's significant other in this is? (Nope, there's no hint nor mention of it, anywhere in the story, just curious what you think!)


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